Some of CNN’s biggest on-air personalities are ‘living in fear’ as they brace for inevitable layoffs and massive salary cuts at the hands of the CEO.
Mark Thompson, who was hired late last summer as the network’s new chief executive, is poised to overhaul the network – denying raises, trimming positions and moving some operations from New York to Atlanta, The Ankler reported.
And as ratings continue to tank, some of the network’s most popular – and expensive – anchors and correspondents may have their entire positions axed.
‘Flat is the new up,’ a CNN agent told the outlet with a laugh.
Along with the hundreds of other jobs lost at the network, insiders expect this winter to be a ‘bloodbath.’
Chris Wallace, 77, is one of the most well-known names whose future may in question as his contract ends.
Wallace was originally given a $8.5 million contract three years ago by former CNN boss Jeff Zucker, in an attempt to steal him away from Fox News, The Daily Beast reported.
He was spotted Tuesday in Thompson’s office, where he was offered a new deal for significantly less than what he previously signed for.
Jake Tapper, CNN’s chief Washington correspondent who anchors The Lead, was recently re-signed but denied a raise, The Ankler reported.
Longtime network veteran Wolf Blitzer, 76, has also been signed into a new three-year contract, but his pay will freeze at roughly $3 million annually. He was also denied a raise.
The network’s dozens of national correspondents – who make anywhere between the mid-to-high six figures – are at the highest risk of having their salaries or jobs cut.
‘If you are not getting an offer several months out, you are in a precarious place,’ a staff member told The Ankler. ‘That anxiety has trickled down and out and across the place.’
Last month, CNN drew a total of 853,000 total viewers. The number is a third less than the network’s competitors, including Fox News and MSNBC, which both drew well over a million.
Despite the ratings drop, Thompson has taken to prioritizing the network’s digital strategy over all else since taking his position in the New York City office last October.
Now, those who are employed as the talent on CNN’s primetime programming segments are nervous about their contracts and job security.
‘Mark has made it known he doesn’t like the conventional style of TV packages we are doing,’ another staff member told The Ankler.
‘He wants people who are edgy. He doesn’t want people who look like your traditional anchorman, and it turns out those edgy people are cheaper.’
Managerial cuts may be significant in the coming months, and on-air correspondents will soon be tasked with new responsibilities.
This includes reporters being asked to write their own scripts, do their own producing, shoot footage vertically for TikTok videos and write their own digital articles.
CNN’s digital and on-air operations have historically been treated as completely separate entities.
But the redundancy between the two operations is reportedly plaguing the company.
‘The place needs to be turned upside down,’ a staffer told The Ankler. ‘It’s not working because no one is watching. It needs a radical overhaul.’
Another area that could be a direct target is the network’s politics team in the Washington bureau.
Thompson reportedly thinks that CNN ‘is over-indexed on politics,’ and has greater interest among its audience for travel and entertainment news.
Other measures in an attempt to cut costs include denying any sort of contract negotiations – no matter how big or popular the name.
Thompson, the former BBC and New York Times boss, has since told some of his highest paid and most notable faces to ‘take it or leave it’, the New York Post reported.
A veteran staffer at the network told The Ankler: ‘Mark has made it clear the cable business is important for revenue for years to come.
‘But it’s not the thing that is going to save us in the long term.’